Why AI is redefining the packaging industry in real time

For years, creative teams have been stuck in a dead end that many refer to as the "be creative now" treadmill. AI proves to be the antidote: by eliminating repetitive, manual steps, designers can think more boldly, respond to rising expectations, and deliver truly impactful concepts without burning out.

Instead of developing ideas linearly, generative AI enables exponential workflows: a handful of keywords or sketches can be expanded into dozens of visual routes within seconds, reducing time to market and opening the door to mass customisation and hyper-personalisation.

Why is AI becoming indispensable right now?

Because regulation has become the defining force of the industry. The packaging and packaging waste regulation (PPWR), deposit return systems, digital product passports for many companies - the pace and scale of changes feel like a compliance tidal wave. Without AI, the complexity becomes unmanageable. With it, the industry gains the ability to turn mandatory changes into competitive advantages. Those still debating the value of AI are already paying the price for late adoption in terms of speed, cost, and credibility.

By processing data along the entire value chain, it accelerates the development of new products and thus AI will soon be able to predict outcomes, allowing packaging teams to plan proactively rather than retrospectively.

Smarter materials, more sustainability

Generative AI accelerates workflows from linear to exponential. Keywords, sketches, and mood boards instantly become dozens of visual instructions. This means that time to market is reduced, mass customisation explodes, and hyper-personalisation becomes possible in previously unknown dimensions.

To fully exploit the potential of AI in the packaging sector, it must be linked to real production processes. Production must be fully digitised to achieve strong synergy by integrating AI directly into digital and hybrid printing and coding workflows. This added value is particularly significant for trade and production-oriented environments, where digital and hybrid printing enables faster changeovers, variable data, smarter coding, and a direct bridge between creative intent and industrial implementation, thus turning AI-driven design into a tangible operational advantage.

How AI reduces waste along the value chain

The true strength of AI lies in linking procurement, design, production, logistics, customers, and end consumers in a single data-driven chain. Waste prevention becomes proactive rather than reactive. When packaging is validated with clean, reliable data, companies can achieve significant savings while offering sustainable, economically viable solutions. Good design becomes measurable and no longer subjective.

Redesigning production and maintenance

In production, AI improves machine efficiency, detects errors before downtime occurs, and extends the lifespan of equipment through predictive maintenance. As data flows more intelligently through factories, production lines can respond more quickly to material changes and adapt to digital processes. AI also has the potential to guide best practices in design: colour, structure, decoration, thereby reducing unnecessary over-engineering.

‘AI will change everything’

At the Packaging Machinery Conference 2025, Ralf Schubert demonstrated how artificial intelligence can be concretely applied in packaging machinery using his company as an example - for instance, in robotics, motion planning and document search. A practical insight into the possibilities of a technology that is changing the world at an unprecedented speed.

Personalisation on a large scale

AI turns packaging into a dynamic, adaptable experience. Layouts can respond to product data, consumer context, or seasonal events. Variations that were previously considered too complex or costly, such as names, regions, or micro-campaigns, become scalable. Packaging evolves from static print templates to programmable media carriers that can build emotional connections and create transparency. Connected experiences are not implicit but represent a gateway to the consumer and promote data intelligence as a turnkey solution for the further development of effective collaboration between HI (human intelligence) and AI. In some areas, such as pharmaceuticals or nutrition, access to real-time information can even save lives.

How can companies successfully implement AI?

Nevertheless, companies must proceed clearly. An 'AI innovation theatre', where tools are used without measurable results, does more harm than good. Fragmented ecosystems, lack of standards, and organisational silos remain significant obstacles.

AI can neither fix weak design thinking nor replace creative intuition. Large companies often lack the cultural curiosity and spirit of cooperation required for genuine AI integration - a gap that is further widened by restructuring and skills shortages.

What comes next?

The future is arriving much faster than expected. Artificial intelligence models will continue to evolve in the coming years and bring about systemic changes by being not just a tool but a cooperative partner. We can already see that this revolution is taking place. This will reshape materials, structures, prototyping, photography, and design workflows. The convergence of AI and HI will form the new operating system of the industry, with packaging becoming a central media channel in both digital and hybrid environments.

Strategic thinking, autonomy, and empathetic AI will shape the next era. Compliance platforms will learn independently, immersive customer experiences will adapt in real-time, and packaging will transform from passive objects to active helpers.

AI is no longer an optional experiment. It is the backbone of the next wave of packaging innovations, and companies that use it with clarity, creativity, and responsibility will set the standards that the rest of the industry will follow.

About the Paris Packaging Week

On 5 and 6 February 2026, the Paris Packaging Week will celebrate its 25th anniversary with a jubilee edition: What began in 2001 with the founding of an event for packaging, PCD, in the cosmetics and beauty industry, has now developed into a global meeting point for the packaging industry in Europe.

The trade fair looks back on a quarter of a century full of creative impulses and technical advances and in 2026 will be under the motto 'Iconic': Innovation, Creativity, Outstanding, Network, Inclusion and Celebration. For two days, leading representatives of the luxury, beauty, premium drinks and aerosol industries will meet in Paris.

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